After Wang Bao’s scare with his stomach feeling like it was ripping open, Wang Xei had demanded he give him a massage before bed every night. Tonight was no different and Wang Bao groaned in pain as his muscles were manipulated to stay relaxed. Just like clock work, as soon as the tension and pain left his body, Wang Bao fell into a deep sleep. Mr Liu had caught on quickly that Wang Xei was feeling a certain way towards Wang Bao but he didn’t know how deep those feelings were or if he had good intentions. Usually Wang Xei would step out to relieve himself after the intense massage but Mr Liu was stopped when he tried to cover Wang Bao with the blankets on the bed.

 

“He won’t be sleeping in here tonight.”

 

“We’re going back to the shack? But with his condition….It won’t be good for his body.”

 

Wang Xei dressed Wang Bao in his own clothes, they were loose around his arms and legs but tight around his belly that had grown a little more. Wang Xei only spoke to Mr Liu once Wang Bao was wrapped up in a cocoon of blankets.

 

“He’s coming with me while you are going back to the shack. Mother will be here soon so It’s best if you get outside now.”

 

“Wh-What?”

 

Mr Liu tried to stand between Wang Xei and Wang Bao but his old body was shoved through the bedroom door and outside, Wang Xei used a firm grip on the man’s arm but not as hard as he would’ve in the past. As he was locking the wooden door, he spoke through the wood with his usual playful tone.

 

“Don’t worry old man, my Brother will be here within the week so you won’t starve to death.”

 

“Wang Xei where are you taking Prince Bao?! He won’t be able to travel in his condition.”

 

Wang Xei didn’t answer the questions as he whistled a happy tone while walking back inside. He was only inside for a few minutes before his Mother was walking through the door, her eyes red from anger.

 

“He’s here! How does that boy know about this place?!”

 

“That Old Liu would’ve told him. I told you to find him before leaving the palace, now look, your plans are failing and it’s barely seen the light of day.”

 

Wang Xei was packing food from his fridge that Mr Liu had made out of anxiety into a bag for the road while his Mother paced around his living room, her sleek hair was sticking up in odd ways because of the constant running of her fingers through it. She was so preoccupied with trying to figure out how to get rid of Wang Lei quickly with the small amount of resources, that she didn’t see Wang Xei walk up behind her. There was a sharp pain in her neck and she fell to the ground. Wang Xei didn’t bother with trying to catch her as he pulled a chair over and pushed her body up. His voice was quiet as he mumbled to himself.

 

“Why did you have multiple kids if all you were going to do is try to kill them off?....Really, you couldn't stop at one?”

 

When Wang Xei was done with securing his Mother’s body to the chair, he pulled out a piece of paper and pen to write a note before glueing it to the woman’s face, she started to stir as she felt something cold touch her face and once she tried to move her arms, she found that she couldn’t move a single centimeter. Her voice was shrill as she screamed out to Wang Xei who was now in his room.

 

“You bastard! I should’ve gotten rid of you when you disappointed me all those years ago!”

 

“Probably. Welp, now your Wang Lei’s problem…..I should probably gag you though.”

 

With Wang Bao in his arms, Wang Xei fought to shove a thick cloth in his Mother’s mouth before quickly tapping it over, although she couldn’t articulate any words it didn’t stop her from screaming at Wang Xei, her eyes narrowed. As soon as she saw Wang Bao in Wang Xei’s arms it made her anger boil over even more and she thrashed her body about as hard as she could, as if her body could break the tight ropes holding her down. With nothing left to do, Wang Xei picked up the bag of food and walked out of the house with the still sleeping Wang Bao in his arms. Once he was outside he could hear the loud booming of gun fire echoing off the surrounding land, Wang Xei didn't waste time and made his way down to the river where a small warf was with a small row boat sitting in the water. He placed Wang Bao down in the boat before getting in himself and rowed out to the middle of the river, using the current to push them away from the sound of gun fire.

 

. . . . . . .

 

Wang Lei stood outside with his Mother laid on his shoulders unconscious, beside him Ala was waiting for his next order but it never came.

 

“Do you want me to get the old man from the shack?”

 

“Yeah~, he might know where Wang Xei has taken Bao.”

 

Wang Lei was trying hard to not let his anger get the best of him since it would lead to him killing his Mother right then and there. When Ala kicked down the door to the shack, Mr LIu let out a frightened gasp then refused to get out of the shack, he had no idea who Ala was and figured she must’ve been someone working with Queen Mother. When Wang Lei heard Ala becoming more impatient as she tried to get Mr Liu out, he walked over.

 

“Mr Liu, she’s with me. Come on out.”

 

“My King, y-you’re here! Wang Xei, he took Prince Bao a-and Prince Bao...He’s he’s”

 

“Pregnant I know. Tell me everything you know quickly while we walk.”

 

Wang Lei turned on his heels and walked back to the path they had taken to get to the lower part of the farm. Mr Liu was shocked by Wang Lei’s abruptness and it took him a few seconds to move his old body. 

 

“W-Well your Majesty, Prince Bao was having bad stomach pains a few days ago and he even bled a little from his rectum. Wang Xei gave him massages daily after that and it was able to help ease his pain. I noticed though your Majesty, Wang Xei, he has those types of feelings for Prince Bao. He left with Prince Bao tonight, you only missed him by ten minutes.”

 

The rest of Wang Lei’s troops ran down to see if Wang Lei was in need of help but were surprised to see Wang Lei walking over to them with Queen Mother over his shoulders. The front man was about to ask about Wang Bao when the Queen Mother was thrown at him, no care about her well being.

 

“Take her back to the palace, keep her bound until she is placed in a cell. No harm comes to her body until I say.”

 

“Your Majesty, what about Prince Bao?”

 

Wang Lei didn’t say anything but his face turned rigid and cold, the look was enough to turn his troops away and they walked back the way they came. Ala and Mr Liu stayed standing behind Wang Lei until he started talking.

 

“No one tells Nakai about this. Mother would’ve killed Bao when she found I was here so we know Bao is safe for now with Wang Xei, we’ll head back to the palace for now and think of a plan before going after them.”

 

Ala walked beside Wang Lei, her voice was hushed even though there was no one to stay quiet around.

 

“Before, what did you mean about Bao being pregnant?”

 

“I’m sure you already know about male pregnancy in the Giant community.”

 

There was silence between them before Ala suddenly quickened her pace.

 

“I’ll go find Rana.”

 

Wang Lei only shook his head while watching Ala walk away, Mr Liu didn’t say anything either and they made their way back to the town. By the time they had entered the small hotel that Old LIu and Karo were waiting in, the sun had risen to mid morning and they were eating breakfast. As soon as the two Brother’s saw one another they both gasped loudly and embraced each other tightly. The sight gave Wang Lei a sour feeling in his chest, to get rid of it, he sat beside Karo and picked at his food. Karo pushed his plate towards Wang Lei and patted his hand.

 

“Did you catch the bad people?”

 

“Yes, now I have to find a rat that stole my Brother”

 

Karo looked up at Wang Lei with concern.

 

“Rats are hard to catch, hopefully he doesn’t eat your Brother.”

 

For the first time in a while, Wang Lei laughed and he rubbed Karo’s head.

 

“How old are you, Karo?”

 

“I’m six.”

 

Karo puffed his chest out proudly at his age and Wang Lei patted his head. Once Old Liu and Mr LIu had had their reconnection, they sat down. Old Liu looked around but saw no sign of Wang Bao, he went to ask but before he could say anything, Mr Liu informed him about everything, including Wang Bao’s pregnancy. The table was quiet except for Karo who had taken his plate back to finish the last of his food. Wang Lei was tired and sore while sitting at the table, Old Liu saw the look on his face and reached across the table, dropping the keys for their room in Wang Lei’s hand.

 

“Go have a sleep my King, we can think of something tomorrow.”

 

“Get a room for Ala and Rana as well as yourselves. Karo are you coming with me?”

 

En. Karo stuffed the last of his eggs into his mouth then dropped from his seat to walk with Wang Lei, holding his hand tightly while they walked up stairs to the room. In the room, Wang Lei undressed from his armoured clothing then soaked in the bath. While he was at the farm, Old Liu had already washed Karo but he still came into the bathroom. He first sat beside Wang Lei reading a book he had found in the room but soon became bored of it. Wang Lei could tell the small boy was wanting to get in the tub but was hesitant to ask. Wang Lei’s voice was lazy as he leaned back into the water.

 

“Karo, you don’t get anything in this world if you don’t ask for it.”

 

“...Can I hop in with you?”

 

En. Wang Lei grunted and before he knew it Karo was undressed, stepping into the tub with a happy face. The faucets for the water were in the middle of the tub so Wang Lei simply reached over to add more water while pouring in half the bottle of body wash. Soon the tub was overflowing with bubbles and Karo giggled loudly while throwing bubbles all over the room. Wang Lei let Karo play however he wanted while he relaxed. He didn’t want to think about his Mother or Wang Bao, he especially didn’t want to think about Nera and how far away he was. 

 

Wang Lei was deep in thought when he suddenly felt something touch his face, once he opened his eyes he saw that there were bubbles covering his entire face, when he wiped it off Karo burst out into a fit of laughter. His own face was covered in bubbles making him look like a laughing cloud. Wang Lei chuckled at Karo’s childish mind, it reminded him too much of Wang Bao and the time they would spend together as children. With his large hands, Wang Lei wiped the bubbles from Karo’s face.

 

“Okay little bubble monster, time to get out.”

 

“Okay~”

 

Karo listened well and stepped out of the tub, pulling a towel off the rack for Wang Lei then himself. Wang Lei simply wrapped it around his waist before taking Karo’s towel to dry him off. During his play time with the bubbles, Karo’s new clothes had gotten soaked so he was kept in the towel. Wang Lei was fully exhausted now and laid down on the bed, it wasn’t long before Karo crawled up to lay beside him. He wasn’t tired at all but still laid beside Wang Lei. His quiet voice trying to soothe Wang Lei.

 

“I used to catch frogs in the summer, I was really good at it too. I can help you find the rat that stole your Brother.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

Karo nodded seriously before patting Wang Lei’s head. To keep Karo from getting bored, Wang Lei gave Karo his phone to do whatever then fell asleep. 

 

. . . . . . . .

 

Wang Xei gently rowed the boat while whistling a light tune, every so often a bird would mimic his tune before it faded out and he would start a new song. He knew Wang Bao would be waking soon so he didn’t bother with trying to stay quiet, even though he had stayed up all night his mood was bright thinking about stealing Wang Bao away from everyone else. While Wang Xei was reveling in his win, Wang Bao slowly woke up. Because he could hear the river and was wrapped snugly in blankets, he thought he was still in Wang Xei’s house, however he soon realised this wasn’t the case when he was fully awake and felt the rockiness from the water. Wang Bao instantly sat up and looked around, seeing nothing but water and trees all around. Wang Xei grinned at Wang Bao’s mess of hair before speaking happily.

 

“Morning.”

 

“What the hell is going on?! Where are we? Where's Mr Liu?!”

 

Wang Bao continued to snap his head from side to side trying to make sense of what was going on, Wang Xei didn't say anything as he watched Wang Bao have his mild freak out, chuckling from amusement before finally explaining the situation.

 

“Don’t worry about that old man, I left him and our Mother with Wang Lei. He should already be heading back to the palace now with his payment.”

 

“What?! Take me back!”

 

Wang Bao stuck his hands into the water in a feeble attempt to stop the boat from moving forward but all that accomplished was turning his fingers blue. Wang Xei laughed loudly, he thoroughly enjoyed seeing Wang Bao act this way and felt his decision was definitely a good idea. 

 

“I’m not taking you back. I traded Mother for you, Wang Lei should be happy.  I was going to kill her once she came back as well as those old people. I would’ve killed that Mr Liu and you as well but you proved yourself to be quite interesting.”

 

“You’re crazy! Take me back now, I want to see my Brother and Nakai.”

 

At the end of his sentence Wang Bao’s voice was quiet but Wang Xei still caught what he had said, his eyes narrowed before he silently opened the bag in front of him. Wang Bao was handed a container of food and he angrily ate it, making sure to face away from Wang Xei so the flavour wouldn’t be tainted. Wang Xei was back to his cheery mood once he saw Wang Bao’s sour face, Wang Bao refused to talk to Wang Xei once his food was done. They swiftly made their way down the river for a few more hours before Wang Xei directed the boat towards a small wharf. When they had docked, Wang Xei stood up effortlessly and stepped out of the boat. Wang Bao refused to move and Wang Xei crouched down, making a move to pick him up. Before he could get a hold of Wang Bao, the man was shooing him away and tried to stand by himself. Wang Bao’s balance wasn’t as great as Wang Xei’s since he didn't spend a lot of time on the water and he almost slipped back into the river. Wang Xei tugged on his flailing arm then hoisted him up to stand on the wharf beside him.

 

“Are you able to walk on land or do you need help with that too?”

 

Wang Bao balled up his fist and punched Wang Xei, holding none of his strength back while doing so. Wang Xei took the beating and even complimented Wang Bao afterwards.

 

“You have good form, you’re not that weak either.”

 

Wang Bao felt he couldn’t win with this man and slumped down before talking properly.

 

“Where are we going? I’m sick of your games.”

 

Wang Xei smiled down at Wang Bao before turning around, whistling a light tune again as he walked forward. There was a dirt path he walked along which meant the area was frequented enough to not grow grass. Wang Bao stomped his feet angrily before balling up the blankets and followed Wang Xei.